Jewish Contribution to Upbuilding of America Will Be Shown at Sesqui

June 24, 1926

Cincinnati, O. (Jun. 23)

(Jewish Daily Bulletin)

A pictorial survey of the contributions of the Jew towards the upbuilding of America will be a feature of the Jewish exhibit at the Sesquicentennial Exposition. The exhibit is being planned through the recently organized Synagogue Council of America, formed by the Union of American Hebrew Congregations, with representatives of the Orthodox. Conservative and Reform national Jewish organizations in America.

Space totalling 1,600 square feet has been assigned by the Sesquicentennial authorities for religious exhibits. The space is divided among the Catholic, Protestant and Jewish religious organizations. The Jewish exhibit will occupy four units each about 110 square feet. The plans for the exhibit specify:

“The four units that are assigned for the Jewish exhibit are to be topped by a frieze, indicating the topic ‘The Pathway of the Jew.’ The same is to consist of Hirtzenstein’s picture called ‘Exiles,’ interspersed by maps; maps of Palestine, Babylon, Spain, Central European countries, Russia, Poland and America.

“The remainder of the exhibit is to consist of panels. There is to be one set of panels indicating the contributions of the Jew to American civilization, notably the Bible, the Sabbath conceived as a day of rededication to fine ideals, the Jewish conception of a Messianic Age which is not a Golden Age in the past but a Golden Age in the future, and which if correctly conceived has contributed much to the forward-looking concept of our modern civilization. Other gifts of the Jew may be selected for this part of the exhibit.

“There will be a few panels indicating the history of the Jews in America, stressing the fact that a Jew constructed the maps that Columbus used, the fact that there were Jews on the vessels of Columbus, and the fact that the Jews landed in New York City (New Amsterdam) only a few years after the Pilgrim Fathers landed at Plymouth rock. Colonial history will be treated by indicating the early settlements. The period of the founding of the Republic will be indicated by the percentage of Jewish population, the percentage of Jewish participation in Revolutionary War, photographs of a few illustrious men and women of that generation, Jewish publications of the period, etc.”

Another part of the exhibit will be devoted to the period of the Civil War; another part to the modern period, and there will be in addition topical displays showing the development of national Jewish religious and educational organizations as well as institutions of learning. There will also be an account of the progress made by national Jewish charitable organizations showing the number of orphanages, old folks’ homes, and other charities.

Twenty-three Jewish students were among the 502 graduates of Princeton University.